01x01 - The Witching Hour

[bunniefuu]

Let the tale seduce you,

just as I was seduced.

Ah!

You like to watch?

Of course.

LOUIS: We were equals.

And then, Claudia.

No! Don't!

Aah!

LESTAT: Embrace what you are!

You are a k*ller, Louis!

♪

[ETHEREAL MUSIC]

♪

[INSECTS CHIRPING, BIRDS CALLING]

♪

[TENSE PERCUSSIVE MUSIC]

They don't like it
when her sh*t is late.

No, I understand.

But because I'm new and
taking over for Dr. Stevens,

it's just hard to believe
this is my patient.

I mean, the file is so thick,
I assumed she was elderly.

She's ,

she is your patient,

and she needs her Thorazine sh*t now.

Before I give her her sh*t,

I really should review her file.

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

♪

[SIGHS]

[EXHALES HEAVILY]

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

[TENSE PERCUSSIVE MUSIC]

♪

Where did he go,

the... the man that
was just talking to her?

What man?

I need a moment alone with my patient...

please.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

What happened to you?

♪

[GULLS SQUAWKING]

I can taste those martinis from here.

I'm trying a new gin from Japan.

Oh.

I was telling the Uber man about you.

- Oh, yeah?
- Yeah.

And he said, if she's
such a fancy doctor,

why does she live on
a boat like a dropout?

Did you tell him, so
I can travel the globe,

searching for home?

I'm your home.

I know.

Hi.

Happy adoption day, my sweet girl.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

So, Joey, you're gonna go to sleep.

When you wake up, you'll
already be feeling better.

Is it really bad, what I have?

All the grown-ups are freaking out.

I'm a grown-up

and a doctor and your surgeon.

Am I freaking out?

Is Maya freaking out?

I'm definitely not freaking out.

You know why?

Dr. Fielding's made me believe in magic.

She's that good.

I have very good instincts.

And right now, my
instincts are telling me

that you're gonna be just fine.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

I'm taking this one.

You'll assist.

What? He's my patient.

That's why you're assisting.

The board decided to sit
in on a procedure today.

They're interested in pediatrics

and, of course, seeing their
chief of surgery in action.

OK, except that I'm
worried that position

will worsen his bleed.

- I suspect his AVM is above the ventricle.
- You suspect?

I know you don't know.

His bleed was so sudden, we
didn't have time to image him.

Dr. Keck, I'm just remembering

that AVM of yours last month,

how you put the patient prone,
used a far lateral approach.

- That was smart.
- Is this really the time

to be arguing, Dr. Fielding?

I feel strongly that
this is the wrong way in.

I'm concerned if we don't flip him

- that he could have another...
- [MONITOR BEEPING]

Oh, sh*t. He's got another bleed.

- OK.
- Get him on his side now.

Towards you. , , .

Oh, my God.

I told you Keck was a menace.

- If you hadn't been there...
- Shh!

Keep your voice down.

I was there, and that
boy's gonna be OK, so...

So he operates on adults
all day, not children.

So he should have been
following your lead

instead of making you tiptoe around him,

trying not to puncture his precious ego.

If I'd openly made him look like an ass,

it would have been much worse.

And that's a win?

How can you be so calm every
time he does this to you?

Because getting angry
won't help my patients.

Yeah, but it might help you.

Yeah, or get me fired.

No way. If you go, I go.

Listen. Someday I'll have Keck's job.

And when I do and you have my job,

you will never have
to do what I just did.

You'll be able to say
what you need to say

and be who you are,
and it'll be a new day.

And remember,

the slow blade penetrates the shield.

Wait. What does that even mean?

I don't know.

Some guy said it to me in a bar.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

Mom.

Hi. What are you doing here?

I was downstairs for my scan.

And?

It's back.

No.

- [KNOCK AT DOOR]
- Yes.

I checked on our patient, and, um,

his vitals are steady,

and he's already asking
to play "Minecraft."

I hope you told him no video games.

That's a great idea. I-I...
I'll... I'll remind him of that.

It occurred to me that Daniel Lemle

was in the gallery today, observing us.

Right.

I've been keeping tabs
on his company Revenia

and the stem cell work
that they're doing,

their trials with cancer patients.

Good for you. Now, I really do need...

Dr. Keck, I-I... um, I have...

I have to ask you for a favor.

[SIGHS]

My mother has relapsed,

and I just saw her
scan, and it's not good.

But Revenia is looking
for a research associate.

It's part-time, and it wouldn't
affect my schedule here.

So I'd like to apply for the job.

I-I mean, the, um...

the stem cell trial is
currently full, but...

maybe we could squeeze my mother in

if I was already there working.

So you know Daniel Lemle.

I thought maybe you could
put in a good word for me.

What word would you have me use?

"Hardworking,"

"impressive," maybe, whatever you think.

I think Daniel Lemle is one
of our most important donors.

And I'm not sure I could recommend

a doctor who would be applying for
his position for personal reasons.

I would never let the
situation with my mom

get in the way of my work.

I think you know me well enough

to know that I'm a
consummate professional.

Oh, well, let me ask you something.

When that boy wanted
to play "Minecraft,"

you told him right then, no video games?

I... may have mentioned.

And yet just now, you made
it seem like you hadn't,

like it was my idea.

I'm gonna be honest with you.

You really can't hide your...
what would you call it...

arrogance, sense of superiority?

You do try.

You make a good show
of being deferential.

But underneath, you're always
very sure that you're right,

like today in the operating theater.

- I was right.
- You were lucky.

You're not ready to take the reins.

I know that's hard to hear,

but I say that for a number of reasons.

You have to be able to lead everybody,

not just your female
surgeons and mentees.

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

[HIGH-PITCHED RINGING]

Ow.

[GROANS]

- What? What's the matter?
- Oh!

Dr. Keck!

[HIGH-PITCHED RINGING]

[EERIE MUSIC]

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

♪

[VOCALIZING]

♪

Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.

Mm, I took the Lord's
name in vain four times...

Well... [CHUCKLES] A lot of times.

I gave Sister Sarah the finger

when her back was turned... again.

What about the man?

I hardly ever see him anymore.

Deirdre...

lying is also a sin.

I guess he has always been around,

even since before my mother d*ed,

which makes him like family,

only way better,

because you know how crazy my aunts are.

So... I'm grateful to him.

Even when I was little,

he always knew what I was feeling.

He actually cared about me.

But now that I'm older,
I don't need him anymore.

I hope that's true.

Ten Our Fathers, three Hail Marys,

one Act of Contrition...

not that you'll do any of them.

[LAUGHTER]

Stop it.

Stop it now.

Girls, to steal flowers off
the altar is a cardinal sin.

We didn't steal them.

They just blew into our arms.

Girls, stop it.

[OMINOUS MUSIC]

I was just talking about
you to Father Duffy.

Don't believe a word he says about me.

Deirdre!

♪

They're all in your hair. [LAUGHTER]

Deirdre!

Oh, she doesn't listen. She doesn't.

You never listen.

How many times have I told you

not to encourage him?

Thousands, and yet
you refuse to obey me.

I didn't ask him to come.

Why can't you see that I
am trying to protect you?

Just go to your room

and think about what you've done.

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

[SIGHS]

We'll go there someday.

You've been saying that
since I was ten years old,

and here I am.

Mm.

She locked you up because of me,

and now you're angry.

She treats me like a child...

that's no surprise... but so do you.

Because you are a child.

No, I'm not.

You're behaving like one,

pouting in your room,

throwing a temper tantrum.

Because I don't want to
play your games anymore.

You know how I feel about you...

and you know what I want from you.

[SIGHS] We both know it's impossible.

When your mother was your age,

on a night like this,

she'd pull out the dress she had hidden

in the back of the closet,

disappear down the trellis to a party.

[DOOR CREAKS OPEN]

There's always a party
at your uncle Cortland's.

[VOCALIZING]

But that makes no sense.

I know it doesn't make sense,

but suddenly...

I was picturing Keck's brain,

like, I mean, his actual
artery pumping blood.

And... and then he collapsed.

I'm sorry that Dr.
Keck is in the hospital,

but I don't see what
that has to do with you.

Because you're not listening to me.

What, the sci-fi part of the story?

You didn't see inside his brain

or sh**t rays from
your head into his head.

I didn't say rays.

Mom, please, listen, Mom.

Remember Lucy Stone from second grade?

They said that she'd had a seizure.

But what I remember is
seeing inside her head,

and then she collapsed.

Are you serious?

If I read his medical report
and it says that he ruptured

his left internal carotid artery,

which is what I saw when I was...

I saw... but...

maybe I didn't see it.

Maybe it was just some
neurological event,

or it's some genetic condition.

But, then, I'd need to know
my genetics to diagnose that.

- And I don't know my genetics.
- Please.

- Do I?
- Please, not this.

But if I knew who my parents were,

then I would know what I came from,

and I would know who I am.

And then maybe I would
understand what happened.

You know how hard I have tried

to find your birth parents.

There is nothing we can
do about a closed adoption.

The agency will not open the records.

I-I'm sorry.

I'm here to comfort you.

Huh.

You're doing a wonderful job.

You know what I would like right now?

Hmm.

Is a strawberry milkshake

from In-N-Out out on Jefferson.

And I've got some money in my purse.

I have a job, Mom.

I can get you a milkshake.

Can you hand me my purse anyway?

Yeah.

Thanks.

Thank you for being with me today.

I'll be back.

[GENTLE PIANO MUSIC
PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]

♪

- [PHONE BEEPS]
- [LINE RINGS]

This is the New Orleans office.

I need to speak to the person

who is assigned to my daughter's file.

I'm sorry. I don't have his name.

Who's calling?

Elena Fielding.

My daughter is Rowan.

Fielding, OK.

Let me check if there's an
agent assigned to your file.

Hold for a moment.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

There is an agent,

but he's not here right now.

I can get him a message.

Please tell him that my daughter...

that she thinks that she has
harmed someone with her mind.

Did she harm someone with her mind?

I think she might have.

So what I need is for this agent

to go and see if
something is different...

in New Orleans, I mean.

I need to know if something has changed.

["MONKEY MAN" PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]

♪

Hey.

Sapporo? sh*t of Tito's?

Both.

Bad day?

Hard to describe.

When's your shift over?

Sorry, Ro, not tonight.

I've got a date.

Yeah, with me.

No.

With someone who won't kick
me out before breakfast.

I'm not a breakfast person.

♪ Well, I am just a monkey man ♪

♪ I'm glad you are a monkey woman too ♪

♪

♪ I was bitten by a boar ♪

♪ I was gouged and I was gored ♪

♪ But I pulled on through ♪

♪

- Hey.
- Hey.

For you, on me.

The kindness of strangers.

Can I get you anything?

Yeah, you can get me out of here.

OK.

Um, how about I get your name first?

[MOANING]

♪ Well, I am just a monkey man ♪

♪ I'm glad you are a monkey, monkey ♪

♪ Monkey woman too, babe

♪

I can't believe you'd really have f*cked

that clown back there.

- [LAUGHS]
- Why, Ro?

For months, I've been watching
you from behind the bar,

this revolving door of guys.

It's got to be so lonely.

Why are you watching me?

We're friends.

I like you.

Well, for one, I bring
guys like that home

because they don't lie next to me

and hound me with questions.

Is it an only-child thing?

Why don't we try
head-shrinking you for a minute?

What exactly is it you're looking for,

your one true love?

- f*ck you.
- No, I... I think it's sweet.

I actually... when I
was a kid, I remember

feeling something like that.

I had this...

weird idea that my shadow was this...

being that was somehow...

part of me.

And he... uh, it seemed like a he.

[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC]

He was someone who knew
what I was thinking,

and he knew my most secret secrets.

And...

he loved me, and he always had.

♪

So you do know what I'm talking about.

I'm sorry I can't be more to you, Max.

But you know what?

I am here now, so...

What?

Hey.

Hey, you canceled your date for this.

[SCOFFS]

I hope you find him.

["GOT TO GIVE IT UP"
PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]

Oh, my goodness.

[LAUGHS]

No, no, no, not the pinkie, not yet.

[CHUCKLES]

Oh, we don't want to
rush things along, Thomas.

After all, the evening is so young.

[CHUCKLES]

Mm.

Ooh!

Don't... don't hog the beauty.

Come on.

Mr. Cortland.

So beautiful.

- Mr. Cortland.
- Mm.

Sir, the young gentlemen have arrived.

Ah, good.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

- Well done.
- Thanks.

Well, now, I think we have a winner.

Young man...

I have a job for you.

[LAUGHS] Nice to see you too.

Hey, there he is.

[LAUGHTER]

Is that really you?

You escaped?

Yes.

Deidre, what a happy surprise.

You look just like your mother. [LAUGHS]

All grown up.

- Thank you.
- Mm.

Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh.

Oh, not for you, Cher.

[CHUCKLES] Uncle Cortland.

[CHUCKLES]

No, for you, only the best.

You can't imagine the number of times

I've driven by your house and thought

I should stop and throw
stones at your window,

try to get you out of there.

I wish you had.

Well, I'm sure it would
only make more trouble

between you and my sisters.

[LAUGHS]

So here's to you,

here at last

and such a delightful surprise.

Hmm, I am so glad you're wearing this.

You know, this belonged to your mother.

The aunts never talk
to me about my mother.

Aw, well, now, they are wicked.

[LAUGHS] The worst kind of wicked.

Well, here's what I remember.

Your mother was full
of life... and mischief.

[BOTH LAUGH]

When she'd laugh, it was like

fireworks lighting up the sky.

And she was funny

and so beautiful.

Course, she paid for her high spirits.

I don't believe she
jumped from the balcony.

You might be right.

And I want you to promise me

you'll be careful.

Hi.

I'm Patrick.

My friend from the other room

dared me to ask you to dance, so...

Sure, go ahead. Dance. Have fun.

That's what we're here for, isn't it?

- [CHUCKLES NERVOUSLY]
- Go on.

[UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]

♪

Don't forget to leave
a glass slipper, Cher.

[BAND PLAYING LIVELY MUSIC]

♪

[OMINOUS MUSIC]

♪

[BAND PLAYING LIVELY MUSIC]

♪

[MOANING]

♪

[DISTORTED LAUGHTER]

♪

[DISTORTED LAUGHTER]

♪

[DISTORTED LAUGHTER]

♪

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

Patrick?

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

[KNOCK AT DOOR]

Miss Mayfair, your aunt is here.

She's insisting you come
downstairs right away.

♪

[INSECTS CHIRPING, OWL HOOTING]

♪

[ZAPPING]

[WHOOSHING]

♪

[WHOOSHING]

[PHONE RINGING]

Hello?

This is Ciprien Grieve.

I'm the agent in charge
of your daughter's file.

Oh.

Thank you so much for calling me back.

- I...
- I'm at the house now,

the house on First
Street in New Orleans?

I see.

Uh...

I guess I was just wondering if...

anything has...

been disturbed or... or different.

[SIGHS] Well, if you're
asking if the man is here,

I don't see him, but...

I can feel him.

He's very near.

So this is... [SIGHS] This is good news.

He's here. Your daughter's there.

, miles between them. So...

you can breathe a little easier, right?

For now,

but time is running out for me.

I need to know

what's gonna happen the
next time you call me

and no one answers.

I need to know who is going
to keep my daughter safe,

Mr. Grieve.

I will.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

I'm the one that will
keep your daughter safe.

Let's take a deep breath.

Feel the air in our lungs.

Celebrate, for a moment,

the great gift of life, huh?

Come on.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

Ah, felt good, didn't it?

[LAUGHTER]

I don't know about you, but...

I'd like to keep doing that
for another, oh, I don't know,

twenty, thirty...

thousand years.

[LAUGHTER]

I'm Daniel Lemle, CEO
of Revenia Research.

And here at Revenia,

we believe death is encoded.

If there is a code,

we can cr*ck it.

And if we can cr*ck it,
then we can hack it.

[LAUGHTER]

Before I go,

take a moment and look at each other.

See, you...

are the first generation of human beings

that just might live forever.

[APPLAUSE]

Did you like my speech?

Hi. I did.

I just... I hadn't put
together that the position

I applied for is part
of longevity research.

Oh, you could see the
overlap, of course.

I mean, cure cellular
malfunctions in humans,

and you've eliminated almost
all the reasons we croak.

I did wonder, though,

why does a hotshot neurosurgeon

who studied microscopy
and gene sequencing

end up looking for a research gig here?

Then I learned about your mother.

I make calls for all prospective hires.

It's OK. [LAUGHS]

Of course you want your
mother in one of our trials.

I get it.

When I first got to Revenia,

I put my wife on the board,
and all hell broke loose,

the other board members
screeching about nepotism.

She wasn't qualified, no added value...

I mean, on and on.

What did I say back to them?

f*ck off.

[BOTH CHUCKLE]

Well, I-I do want my
mother in the trial.

I think she's a suitable candidate,

and... and I don't think
that there's anything wrong

with being personally
motivated to... to want a job.

And I think... I think
it'll make me work harder.

My point exactly,

which means my hunch
about you was right.

Now, come downstairs,

and I can show you
where you'll be working.

Wait. I... so I-I got the job?

Come on.

The hours will be long,
and I need to know now

how that's gonna fly with the husband,

boyfriend, kids.

None of the above.

All right. Check it out.

It's a Rodin.

I got a great deal at a private auction.

Do you like modern art?

[URINE TRICKLING]

You know, Judy Chicago has
some kind of performance piece

at the de Young tonight.

My wife's busy, and I
have an extra ticket.

I can't tonight, but I, um...

I'll get in touch with HR
to get my paperwork started.

And I have all my mom's records with me.

The... the tough thing
with the trial is,

we only have so much room, of course.

I'll have to rejigger
things to get your mom in,

which I'm happy to do.

[TOILET FLUSHES]

I do have a reputation for being tough.

If you work here, you got
to run with the boys...

and the girls.

You got to think like a k*ller, yeah?

Metaphorically, of course.

I know a lot of doctors who are K*llers

and not just metaphorically.

So...

pick a name.

Let's get your mom in this thing.

- Pick a name?
- There's slots.

We already have patients.

It doesn't matter to me which
patient your mom replaces.

I'm sure you can just
add my mom to the list

and... and make it .

I'm sure you haven't
dealt with the FDA before.

They're Nazis about this stuff.

's the number, so...

go on, pick a name.

Please don't do this.

This is my mother's life,

and she's... she's all that I have.

- But I can't just pick a name.
- Dr. Fielding.

Those are just names in a trial.

Cross one out.

Don't get tangled in the minutia, huh?

You mean patients.

Look.

You got a job to do.

I got a company to run.

Pick a name.

[TENSE MUSIC]

♪

If my mother saw me pick a name,

she would drop dead on the spot

way before the cancer could k*ll her.

♪

I can't pick a name.

Don't tell me my hunch
about you was wrong.

I hate being wrong.

Because someone like you is
never really wrong, are they?

After all, you're so powerful.

You're so special.

All right.

Maybe, uh...

yeah, maybe you don't
get what we're doing here.

I know what I'm doing here.

I'm pretending that I
find you interesting,

pretending that I think
you're smarter than me,

pretending that I admire
you, but I don't admire you.

In fact, I see through you
to the small, needy man-child

with the raging ego,

the dupe who overpays for a fake Rodin,

the bully who can only
feel good about himself

if everybody else is minutia.

You think that you
should live forever. Why?

So that you can piss
in front of more women

or play God with cancer patients' lives?

Or maybe you think that
you should never die

simply because you're such
a dazzling gift to the world,

so busy changing it.

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

♪

[GASPS]

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

♪

- [ELECTRONIC BEEP]
- [DOOR CLICKS SHUT]

[CRYING]

What is it?

What happened?

Mom, it happened again,

just like it did with
Keck and Lucy Stone.

Ex-except this time, I lost
my temper and I made it happen.

Rowan, I cannot hear this.

I have to face it.

I have to face what's happening.

There's something really wrong with me.

I have some... some kind of...

of monstrous power.

Rowan.

Rowan, I am tired.

I cannot hear this nonsense.

You do not have a power.

[ETHEREAL VOCAL MUSIC]

Listen to me.

♪

You have got to get ahold of yourself.

You cannot give in to
this twisted thinking.

It is dangerous.

And I will not spend
my last days worrying

that you are gonna get sucked
into some sick delusion.

Rowan...

just be with me.

That's all I'm asking.

That's all I want.

[SNIFFLES]

- OK.
- [MOANING]

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

[OWL HOOTING FAINTLY]

[KNOCKING]

Deirdre, it's Father Duffy.

You need to open the
door right this minute.

♪

[OWL HOOTING FAINTLY]

So this boy...

Patrick.

He hasn't called or visited you?

He can't visit because he's dead.

The body that they carried out,

it was him.

You don't know that.

I know what I know.

Aunt Carlotta, she k*lled him

because he made me happy.

She was there when
they took his body away.

Deirdre...

how can I help you when
you tell tales like this,

a crazy story about your
family k*lling a boy?

I'm not lying, and you know I'm not.

You know the awful things
that happen in this family...

in this house.

Weren't you the one they called

when my mother was
pushed from the balcony?

She jumped...

because she was in
such pain and turmoil,

God rest her soul.

And now I'm worried for your soul,

for the soul of your child.

I can't help but think there
was no boy at that party,

that this has happened
because of the man.

He didn't do this.

I haven't seen him since that night.

Father, please,

I have to get out of here...

before something even worse happens.

Please... help me.

The surest and truest
help I know comes from God.

Will you at least pray with me?

♪

You're scared of them...

Like everyone else.

Just go.

Go!

[SOBBING]

♪

[DOOR CREAKS OPEN]

[DOOR CLICKS SHUT]

♪

[VOCALIZING]

♪

[WINDOW CREAKING]

♪

[PIPE CREAKING]

♪

[MUSIC INTENSIFIES]

- Darling...
- [GASPS]

No.

Lasher.

You know where to find me.

[WINDOW CREAKING]

♪

Dear God, the darkness is here.

The darkness is in her,

that sweet, beautiful girl.

It's growing in her.

I fear for her and for her unborn child.

Oh, dear God, I fear for us all.

[ETHEREAL VOCAL MUSIC]

I fear what we may have to do.

♪

Give me one good reason to live.

[ELECTRICITY CRACKLING]

[FIRE WHOOSHING]

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

That baby is coming.

She will change everything.

She will change your life forever.

[LAUGHS]

She won't.

She will be stuck with
them, just like I am.

And you can't take us away from here.

Yes, I can.

I'm yours already.

The necklace you wear,
it binds us together,

♪

Ah,

but only because your mother
made that choice for you.

Now you're old enough to make
that choice for yourself...

To bind with me of your own free will.

So take it off.

♪

And I will show you.

I will show you who I really am.

And if you're strong
enough to face this...

I will be yours entirely,

yours to command.

♪

Do you want to see who I truly am?

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

I do.

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

- [GASPS]
- I am everyone.

I am no one.

I'm a saint.

- [GASPS]
- I'm a demon.

[GASPS]

Will you take me, Deirdre?

Will you take me to be yours forever?

♪

You are my witch now.

- [LIQUID SPLATTERING]
- [GASPS]

[SCREAMS]

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

[SCREAMS]

["SUMMON"]

May the Lord who frees you from sin

save you and raise you up.

♪

♪ You only hear ♪
- [SCREAMS]

♪ What you want to hear ♪

[BABY CRYING]

♪ Take my heart as a souvenir ♪

I wanted so badly to save her.

Of course you did,

but these things are not in our hands.

They're in God's.

What you did do

is love your mother with all your heart.

It's a girl, isn't it?

I want to see her.

She needs to see the doctor first.

No! Carlotta!

No! Bring her back!

No!

Carlotta, no!

♪ You're losing ♪

♪ Hands fall limp ♪

♪ And I drift off ♪

♪ Learning how ♪

♪ To speak again ♪

[SNIFFLES]

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪

Here are the rules.

You will change your name.

You will no longer be a Mayfair.

You will never return here.

You will never call.

And most importantly,

this baby can never,
ever know who she is.

It would be too dangerous
for this family and for her.

Whatever you say, Aunt Carlotta.

♪

♪ When I feel small ♪

What's her name?

♪ You hold me ♪

Deirdre wanted to name her... Rowan.

♪ Closely ♪

♪ Looking through ♪

[EXHALES HEAVILY]

♪ The stained glass window ♪

Rowan.

♪ You might catch something ♪

Hi.

♪ Holy too ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

A malformed heart.

The doctor said she
couldn't have survived.

He's going to come and give
you a sh*t to help you sleep.

♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪

♪

Ah, poor thing.

Have you been trying to get this off?

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

[TENSE PERCUSSIVE MUSIC]

♪

There.

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

♪

You and I...

♪

Are gonna share a little secret.

♪

I'm not gonna give you
the Thorazine sh*t today.

And I'm not gonna give
it to you tomorrow.

But I will come every day,

because what I really want to know

is who you are without the dr*gs.

I want to know who
Deirdre Mayfair really is.

[ETHEREAL VOCAL MUSIC]

♪

Lasher is on the move.

I need to call Rowan Fielding's mother.

[PHONE RINGING]

[DRAMATIC STRING MUSIC]

♪

[LINE RINGS]

[ANSWERING MACHINE BEEPS]

[SIGHS]

[THUNDER BOOMING]

[WATER SLOSHING]

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

[VOICES WHISPERING INDISTINCTLY]

[THUNDER BOOMING]

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]

♪

[THUNDER BOOMING]

♪

[THUNDER BOOMING]

♪

Tell me about Daniel Lemle.

His death had nothing to do with me.

- [GROANS]
- Are you okay?

♪

[WHISPERING VOICE] Rowan.

She needs to know who she is.

If only to protect herself.

MAN: I promised you once
that your life would change.

That change is coming, my love.

He is bound to you like
he's bound to your mother.

Are you frightened of
him? Shouldn't I be?

Any woman that makes a deal
with the devil gets b*rned!

[CHEERING]

When they come for us,
we have to stand together.

You have real power.

If you want this to work, you
need to behave like a Mayfair.

Something's happening!

- [SCREAMS]
- [SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]

WOMAN: He's coming! Keep going!

[ROWAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]

For the first time in
my life, I know who I am.

♪

♪

WOMAN: This episode is
called "The Witching Hour,"

and it's named "The Witching Hour"

because that is the
title of the first book

in Anne Rice's Mayfair trilogy.

Michelle Ashford and I, who
created the show together,

really wanted to signal
that we were embarking on,

in this first season, telling
the story of this first book.

Where did he go, the man
who was just talking to her?

What man?

♪

Rowan is this extraordinarily
independent spirit.

I love this character who's,
like, out in the open ocean,

on a boat, in the elements, on her own,

but part of the mystery of Rowan

is that she's searching for who she is,

she's searching for an
understanding of where home is.

I was telling the Uber man about you.

Yeah? Yeah, and he said,

"If she's such a fancy doctor,

why does she live on
a boat like a dropout?"

Did you tell him, "so
I can travel the globe

searching for home"?

I'm your home.

Is Ellie her true home, or
is there some other, larger

home and family out there?

The hours will be long,

and I need to know how that's
gonna fly with the husband,

boyfriend, kids?

None of the above.

It felt really important

that we see Lemle as
someone who's stopping her

from being able to achieve
what she wants to achieve,

which is a real natural desire
to save her mother's life.

Pick a name, let's get
your mom in this thing.

Pick a name?

There's slots.

We already have patients,

doesn't matter to me which
patient your mom replaces.

What he's saying to her is,

I have an instinct
that you are a k*ller.

If my mother saw me pick a name,

she would drop dead on the spot

way before the cancer could k*ll her.

And in arguing with him
that she is not a k*ller,

that he is wrong about
her, she kills him.

♪

And so, in fact, he was right

in his instinct about her in some way.

This is a question
that's gonna plague Rowan

through the entire first season,

"Am I a destroyer or not?"

♪

MAN: What about the man?

I hardly ever see him anymore.

Deirdre...

Lying is also a sin.

Deirdre has been locked up
in the First Street House

and not allowed to go
anywhere except to school

and to confession, because
her aunts are so terrified

of the power of Lasher,

who is this being
who's connected to her.

- [LAUGHTER]
- Stop it! Stop it now!

This is one of the scenes
that comes out of the book,

where rose petals are
falling, and young girls

outside the church are dancing in them,

and that idea that,
throughout her childhood,

there's then been this
magical being in her life

who showers her with rose
petals and makes her feel special

and makes her feel divine,

is a part of the seduction
of this figure, Lasher.

How many times have I told
you not to encourage him?!

I didn't ask him to come.

Why can't you see that I
am trying to protect you?!

[SIGHS] Just go to your room.

And think about what you've done.

She believes Lasher is the only
one who sees or understands her

because her aunts have made any
kind of other human interaction

impossible for her.

- [SIGHS]
- Cortland is such a wonderful character.

Don't hog the beauty, come on.

Just full of that Mayfair, kind of,

joy and lavishness and decadence.

You can't imagine the number of
times I've driven by your house

and thought, I should stop and
throw stones at your window.

Try to get you out of there.

I wish you had.

Well, I'm sure it would
only make more trouble

between you and my sisters.

- [CHUCKLES]
- So...

Here's to you.

An he's also a nefarious character,

he's got all kinds of hidden agendas,

the snake seemed to
embody him perfectly.

You know I'm worried for your soul,

for the soul of your child.

It felt really important
that Rowan's birth,

the origin of this character,

be embedded in the story of the pilot.

We wanted the audience

to be in on the secret
of Rowan's origins,

this kind of fairytale
story of this baby

who's taken from a family,
moved somewhere else,

doesn't know who she is,
doesn't know her name.

Anne Rice's book is all about
mothers and the power of women.

I wanna see her! She needs
to see the doctor first.

No! Carlotta!

No! Bring her back! No!

So, it felt really important
to have Rowan's birth

in this first episode.

This baby can never,
ever know who she is.

It'd be too dangerous for
this family and for her.

Whatever you say, Aunt Carlotta.

♪

[THUNDER RUMBLING]

We wanted to end the episode
with Rowan out in the elements

again just as we met her, but
with so much having changed.

She's lost her mother, she is
beginning to think of herself

as a kind of monster who has
a power she doesn't understand.

And in Deirdre's story,
this necklace comes off

and now Lasher has been released.

I want to know who
Deirdre Mayfair really is.

What will happen now that Lasher
has come into proximity with Rowan?

♪

♪